BVA responds to declaration of Avian Influenza Prevention Zones in Great Britain

Published:09:21Thursday 08 December 2016

The UK’s Chief Veterinary Officer and the Scottish and Welsh Governments have announced Avian Influenza Prevention Zones for England, Scotland and Wales to help protect poultry from the highly pathogenic strain of Avian Influenza (H5N8) currently circulating in mainland Europe.

All zones across Great Britain will remain in place for 30 days and during that time keepers of poultry and other captive birds will be required to keep their birds indoors, or take appropriate steps to keep them separate from wild birds.

Responding to the declarations, BVA President Gudrun Ravetz said: “These are sensible precautions to protect captive birds and poultry across Great Britain from the threat of migratory birds spreading this disease. We would urge poultry keepers to be vigilant and get veterinary help and advice at an early stage. Any suspicion of the disease must be reported to the APHA and their centralised contact number can be found on the APHA website.

“It is important to understand that there is no Avian Influenza in the UK at the moment and there has been no evidence to date that the disease poses any threat to human health whatsoever.”